The Adventures of Baby Bel: I'M LOST

* * *Note to Readers and Reviewers:
This is intended to be a child's picture book. While these photographs are stock pictures, and not mine, they do represent the type of photos I wish to use for this story.

Word Count:1680

The Adventures of Baby Bel
I'M LOST!

"I'm lost," cried Baby Bel. "Can you help me find my way home?"

The man in the red bathing suit stepped closer to the water. "I can't," he said. "I don't know where you come from, but I can help you get out of this cove."

"Oh no." Baby Bel moved his head back and forth in the water. "I'm afraid to go out there. I don't know what is ahead."

"What is ahead can be no worse than what's right here," said the man. He wore a white shirt with the red cross on it. He lifted it over his head and dropped it onto the sand. "But if you stay here, you'll never see your home again."

"Oh!" Baby Bel flapped his flippers with excitement. "Is my home just outside of this cove?"

"I don't think so." The man walked into the water and closer to Baby Bel. "But if you let me help you get out, it will be a step in the right direction."

"Thank you," said Baby Bel. "What is a step?"

The man looked at Baby Bel, but he didn't answer.

"Well, whatever it is, I think I would like to try the step in the right direction. Please help me out of this cove."

The lifeguard called for many of his friends to gather around. They were very kind, and Baby Bel was not frightened as they helped him over the sandbar that blocked the way out of the cove.

And Baby Bel was on his way...

* * *

"I'm lost," said Baby Bel. "Can you help me find my way home?"

"No! I can't," snapped the slime-covered fisherman in the smelly boat. "Go away!"

"But I don't know which way to go!" Baby Bel explained. "I'm lost!"

The man pointed north with a crooked finger. His voice was loud and harsh. "Go that way!"

"But I don't know if it's the right way." Baby Bel swam around in a small circle. "I will stay where I am. At least I know I am here."

"You can't stay here!" The snarly man leaned over the side of his boat and hollered. "If you stay here my nets will ensnare you, and you will never see your home again. If you go north, at least it will be a step out of danger."

"What is a step?" Baby Bel asked, but the man just snarled and banged his hand against the side of his dirty boat.

Baby Bel stared at the man and slunk down into the water. "I think I would like to try the step out of danger."

The mean, snarly man in the smelly, slimy boat hoisted up his nets so Baby Bel could pass. "Go on, now. Go home."

And Baby Bel was on his way...

* * *

Baby Bel watched the young family laughing and playing on the shore. "I'm lost," he called out before he could stop himself. "Can you help me find my way home?"

"What's your name?" asked the children.

The man stood in front of the little ones and shouted in a deep bellowing voice. "Stand back! It might be dangerous!"

Baby Bel looked around to see what the man was afraid of. "Who me?" Baby Bel asked. "I'm not dangerous," he said, "I'm just a lost baby whale. He looked back toward the angry man in the slimy boat. Danger is one step to the south."

"Can we keep him?" The boy jumped up and down. His wide smile made Baby Bel's heart flutter with happiness.

"Oh yes, may we?" The girl clasped her hands and stood perfectly still. The brightness in her eyes made Baby Bel's eyes tear with joy.

"If you keep me, will I be home at last?" asked Baby Bel. He was so excited, he jumped high out of the water and flopped back down with a big giant splash.

"We can't keep him, Children," said the woman with a voice as soft as a cloud. "This baby is a Beluga Whale. He needs to be home with his momma, just as you need to be here with me."

"But I can't find my way home." Baby Bel began to cry. "Please, may I stay here with you and be your Baby Bel?"

"I'm sorry, Baby Bel," said the lady. "You can't stay here. But you can find your way home. All you need to do is continue north, and each day you will be one step closer to home. If you do that, you'll be where you are supposed to be when you're supposed to be there. Do you understand, Baby Bel?"

"No." Baby Bel forced a large spout of water through his blow-hole. "But I think I trust you, so I will go north, and I'll keep to my course."

And Baby Bel was on his way...

* * *

Baby Bel continued to the North.

Even though he had a few frights, and more than a few mishaps, and a couple of close calls with fishing nets that almost caught him, he never gave up. He stayed on course and he was always one step ahead of danger.

And then, one fine sunny day day, Baby Bel saw a pod of beluga whales. Carefully, he swam closer, and then he heard a voice he remembered from long ago - before he got lost. And he knew he was home at last.

All the whales moved aside and he saw her swimming toward him.

"Baby Bel?" said the large white whale. "Is that you, my precious one?"

"Momma?" asked Baby Bel. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, my love." She breached for joy. "It is I, your momma, and I've been waiting for you for a very long time. Come close to me and stay forever."

Baby Bel swam as fast as he could and when he reached her, they both leaped right out of the water and then flopped down with great giant splashes!

There was a huge celebration. Every other Beluga Whale came to welcome Baby Bel. "You're home at last!" They swam in circles and jumped out of the water, waving their flippers and flopping back down with great splashes that made waves. "You can never be lost again!" they shouted as the waves they made with their happy dance rippled out to sea.

It was a wonderful party, and when it was over, Baby Bel and his momma swam in lazy circles with their pod while he told her of his adventures and all those who'd helped him along the way.

"Momma?" Baby Bel asked.

"Yes, Baby Bel?" asked Momma in return.

"What's a step?"

"I don't know," said Momma. "Does it matter?"

"No," said Baby Bel, "but I think I took one."


-----
CsA


Definitions

Anticipation: Thinking about something that is about to happen.

Blow-hole: A whale's nose or nostril. Whales breath air like we do and when they let the air back out, it makes a water spout or what some folks call a whale-cloud. Some whale clouds can be seen for miles.

Breaching: Whales like to leap high out of the water and drop back down on their sides or back with a huge splash. No one really knows why whales do this, but having seen it, I like to believe they are expressing happiness!

Cove: A small inlet usually separated from the sea by a sandbar or jetty. The water there is usually calm, with no waves. Sometimes large sea creatures: fish, animals, and mammals (like whales) swim in at high tide, and then, when the water lowers with low tide, they can't get back out.

To be ensnared: To become tangled-up in.

Fins: Whales have fins on their backs. They are shaped like the sails on sailboats. Fins help them stay upright while swimming. Sailors, fisherman, and scientists can tell from a long way away, just by the shape of a sea creature's fins, if it is a whale, a shark, a dolphin, or one of many other different sea creatures. Most fish and sea mammals have fins on their backs. Some even have a fin on their belly.

Flippers: Flippers on a whale are on their sides, where arms would be. They help the whale to swim, change direction, splash, breach, and other things. If you look closely enough, you might even see a whale waving at you!

Fluke: This word has two meanings. One is it names a part of the whale: The large horizontal tail of a whale. No two whale flukes are he same. So, clever scientists decided this would be a great way to recognize the whales. It has worked so well that now many of the whales we see actually have names. This is how scientists track whales to see how they are doing and how their family is doing.

The second meaning of fluke is something the whale does. When a whale is swimming at the surface or top of the water and it wants to go very deep the whale will curve its body downward and its tail will pop out of the water and stick straight up into the air. Then it disappears beneath the surface with barely a splash at all. Whales are very graceful, like swimming ballerinas.

High Tide: When the water is deeper, we call it high tide.

Low Tide: When the water is lower, we call it low tide. The tide changes take several hours to rise and fall.

Pod: A whale family. Pods sometimes have moms and dads and babies which are called calves. They also can have aunts and uncles and cousin whales. Some pods are very small, having only three whales. Some pods have many whales. Too many to count. Whales do not always swim in pods. Most of the time, they like to swim alone and get back together with the pod at nap time.

Sandbar: Sometimes the waves of the ocean push large amounts of sand into piles. The sand piles up higher and higher like an undersea mountain. Some sandbars stay in place a for days, and some stay in place for years until the waves wash them away.


Discussion questions:

How do you suppose Baby Bel got lost?

When Baby Bel discovered he was lost, why didn't he try to find his way home by himself?

What did you think of the fisherman? Was he nice or was he mean?

Why would it be dangerous for Baby Bel to become ensnared in the fisherman's nets? (Is ensnared the same thing as being caught?)

Do you think the little family on the beach should have let Baby Bel stay with them and be their pet?

Can you think of a reason why Baby Bel does not know what "a step" is?


An Experiment

Our world turns around each and every day; that is how we have day and night. But changing days is not the only thing the turning causes. It also causes the ocean to get higher and lower.

Here is a little experiment to help you understand: Put a little water into a plastic bowl and set it on the kitchen table or counter. If you stay very still, you will notice it looks like a sheet of glass. Now - very gently - move it back and forth. See how the edges get higher and lower as the water sloshes back and forth? That is kind of what happens with the tides as our planet spins around sloshing the oceans back and forth just like that.

* * *